• by Karl Greenberg , April 12, 2011

Ford is running an ad campaign touting its gas-efficient vehicles. But the effort is running solely -- although appropriately -- on Gas Station TV (GSTV.) The effort will reach some 27 million drivers refueling at some 1,100 stations.

Gas Station TV CEO David Leider explains that while the first two ads are part of the global Focus campaign creative via Team Detroit, the bookend -- or echo ad -- that tours Fiesta, Focus and Fusion was created by GSTV. The ads run in tandem, with a 15-second spot from the general market campaign running before content from channels like CNBC or Access Hollywood, and the 10-second echo ad running after the content. "We introduced the echo ad product in 2009 and Ford was first to use it. The idea is that it's a simple way to build reach and frequency impact because consumers get two impressions of the Ford message," he says.

Leider says that given the context, the many automakers who advertise on GSTV run fuel-efficiency messages, "but they have found that our network is what we like to call the in-market TV network," he says. "We are the only network that reaches 100% drivers. By definition [people at the pump] are three times more likely to be in-market for a new vehicle. We have also seen that our overall likeability scores, ad recall, brand and brand favorability are really high."

According to a study by Lieberman Research Group, 78% of viewers said they were likely to purchase a Ford vehicle after viewing the ad on the gas station platform. Ford also had the highest brand opinion among automotive competitors, and had 39% ad recall among GSTV viewers.

Leider says that in addition to automotive, credit cards and insurance have a strong presence on GSTV. "We are endemic for auto, credit card, and insurance. It's the only TV network where the consumer has their wallet in their hand." He says 40% of people at a gas pump are on their way to a retail location -- 25% within the next two hours.